Lyndy Wilkinson was named Dean of Technical Education at Amarillo College in September 2012 and immediately developed a purpose statement that emphasizes her foremost priority: “Putting People to Work through Industry Partnerships.” Wilkinson, who joined AC after five years with the Amarillo Economic Development Corporation, has been charged with improving the success of AC’s technical students by improving their value to local employers. One way she plans to meet this challenge is by aligning the curricula more closely with the needs of business and industry as quantified by valued members of AC Advisory Boards. “We need honest feedback from industry,” Wilkinson said. “I look forward to candid conversations about our programs because we certainly want to fix what’s broken and optimize what is working.
We are committed to responding to the needs of our business community. After all, our most important job is to prepare students for the workplace, so we’ve got to make sure they have the skills that the workforce requires and desires.”
A recent CEO Forum demonstrates just how serious the College is about responding to industry needs. The CEOs were emphatic that new hires were lacking in soft skills. The College responded by introducing a “Professionalism” track in its Technical Education and Nursing divisions that require students to master customer service, business communication and problem-solving skills. This is not the only recent indication that AC has adopted a renewed responsiveness to business and industry. Improved communication also is evident in the College’s increasing reliance on its Advisory Boards, like that for the Auto Collision Department. Based on the advice of its advisors, the department recently hired an instructor with the sort of industry experience needed to facilitate curricular change. In doing so, the College agreed to allow this individual to continue working toward the teaching credential that formerly would have been required as a condition of employment. “We’re listening carefully to the business community,” Wilkinson said. “We’re telling them what we’ve heard and we’re showing them what has been done in response to their original feedback. It’s all about building trust, about truly listening, and about acting on the recommendations we receive. “In this way there is so much we can get done,” she said. “It’s very exciting.”
REALIGNING FOR SUCCESS
Partnering for Student Success
Delane McUne’s credentials are impressive. With a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from University of Texas at Austin, an MBA from Eastern New Mexico University, and a Graduate Certificate in Managerial Wind Energy from Texas Tech, McUne, Program Coordinator – Electronic Systems Technology, Instrumentation Technology and Energy, has the academic muscle to help get AC’s technical curriculum on track.
Jeff Wallick, the new Industry Partnership Coordinator at East Campus, is a humble guy. When asked what he did before he came to AC he said, “Professional dishwasher”. Professional dishwasher is Wallick-speak for Account Executive with the Golden Light Equipment Co. Logging 2,000 miles a week, Jeff sold and serviced Auto-Chlor machines in a 7,000 sq. mile territory from La Junta, CO to Vernon TX. With only two route technicians for his 380 hotel and restaurant clients, he often found himself “swinging a wrench” for repairs or installations. He put 46,000 miles in 9 months on the company truck. That’s a lot of driving.
Coupled with an impressive business resumé that includes five years at General Electric’s Nuclear Energy Division and other equally impressive positions in management and engineering, McUne’s experience in the workplace gives her special insight into today’s workforce requirements for technicians. In concert with Department Chair Kim Hays and the East Campus faculty and staff, McUne is firmly focused on streamlining the curriculum to better prepare students for the workplace. “When we realized that our tech maintenance students didn’t have the right workforce skills we knew we had to do something,” says McUne, “so we’ve redesigned parts of the curriculum by requiring a core set of classes common to several programs and streamlined other areas by eliminating redundancy.”
“The challenge for technical schools is to keep up with the pace of change in the workforce and to make sure that what we’re teaching gives students the right skills to get hired,” says McUne.
After attending Randall High School (’92) and Amarillo College, Wallick graduated with a B.S. in Education (Social Studies Composites) from
WTAMU in 2001. He taught grades 8-12 for 5 years in Borger and Amarillo, and even spent 3 years teaching at the Universal American School of Kuwait, travelling through the Middle East, North Africa, Southeast Asia and Northern Europe during his vacations. That’s a lot of travelling. Increasing local business’s involvement with our programs on the East Campus is Wallick’s main focus. “I want to help dispel the myth that a person has to have a four-year college degree to be successful, and the best way to do that is to make sure our students are in high demand for good jobs.” We’re looking for business partners for student internships and participation on our advisory panels, says Wallick, “because if employers have skin in the game, there’s a better chance they’ll hire our students, and that’s what it’s all about.”
If you would like to serve on an Advisory Panel or sponsor an internship, please contact Jeff
To guide these curriculum changes, faculty and administrators researched similar programs from top schools to compare best practices. Years ago, technical education trended towards specialization, but the current direction has shifted toward a more general focus with a base of essential, defined core areas.
Wallick at (806) 335-4228.
Auto Collision Program to start again this Fall at AC
Another major change is the move from sixteen to eight week terms. “An eight week term gives the student a more focused approach. Students will take two classes in the first eight weeks and two classes in the second, instead of four for the entire sixteen weeks,” said McUne.
Amarillo College will offer an Auto Collision Certificate program in the Fall and has chosen 23-year industry veteran, Eddie Casias, to lead the program.
“To eliminate duplication we’ve combined courses shared by different programs, like PLC (Programmable Logic Control) and Electronics. A PLC is the same whether it’s used in a wind turbine or on the factory floor. Several of the Safety courses are also merging.” To make programs more accessible to working students and to line up with shift schedules, classes will be scheduled in the morning or the evening. Hardly any classes will be offered in the afternoon.
Moving Mountains of Machines When renovation was complete in the new Manufacturing Education Building, students learned about the logistics and mechanics of moving machines this summer. Above: (L) Adjusting the mounts. (R) Showing how it’s done. Right: Moving the CNC machine
“Nationwide, the auto body repair industry lacks trained entrylevel workers and is struggling to replace retiring craftsmen.” Casias said. “Now I’ll be able to give students the right start in the business.” Over the years, Casias has taught many helpers who have gone on to become great painters. “High Schools have gotten away from the trades,” Casias said. “They don’t have the money to invest in equipment.” As far as he knows, Palo Duro is the only high school in Amarillo that teaches auto body repair.
“My goal is to take individuals and make them job ready for any body shop.”
“The technology has changed a lot in just five years. “Metals on older cars are stouter, new cars are more disposable. On the old cars you couldn’t budge the metal but you can dent the new ones with your thumb if you press hard enough,” Casias said. “You can take an older car and charge four or five hours to fix a dent but sometimes it’s cheaper to replace the panel than to fix it. It’s a lot easier to total a vehicle these days…they’re more disposable.” The Amarillo College program will teach today’s technology with sponsor-donated equipment. A student can earn the Auto Collision Certificate in nine months over two semesters. With his industry contacts, Casias will be able to help students land job interviews after they’ve completed the program. “My goal is to get students ready to start working in a shop,” he said, “and to make this the finest program possible.”
High Demand Occupations Occupation
Annual Average Employment 2004 2014
Number Change
Growth Rate
Annual Average Job Openings Growth Replacement Total
‡Automotive Service Technicians & Mechanics
1,050 1,200
150
14.3%
15 30 45
‡Bus & Truck Mechanics & Diesel Engine Specialists
400
500
100
25.0%
10 10 20
‡Heating, Air Conditioning, & Refrigeration Mechanics & Installers
350 450
100
28.6%
10 5 15
‡Industrial Machry Mechanics
600 700
100
16.7%
10 15 25
‡Maintenance & Repair Wrkrs, General
1,750 2,050
300
17.1%
30 35 65
Helpers--Installation, Maintenance, & Repair Wrkrs
300 350
50
16.7%
5 10 15
Transportation & Material Moving Occupations
13,600 15,550
1,950
14.3%
195 305 500
‡Truck Drivers, Heavy & Tractor-Trailer
2,850 3,330
450
15.8%
45 45 90
Truck Drivers, Light or Delivery Services
1,500 1,750
250
16.7%
25 15 40
‡Industrial Truck & Tractor Oprs
750 850
100
13.3%
10 15 25
Source: http://www.wspanhandle.com/site_main/labor_hd_ocs.html ‡Panhandle WDA High-Priority (WIA targeted) Occupations
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